Latest News
June Watershed Moments
Here now is an image and quote from the museum's award-winning book Watershed Moments - A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District. Click for a Larger Image Photo credit: CDM 2009.11.1 Photo caption: Out for a ride, ca. 1890. On horseback left to right: Ernest Halliday, Lilly Kirby, David Jones, Elizabeth Grieve, Berkeley Grieve, Jane Finley, H. Kirby, M. Halliday, William Halliday, Caroline Kirby. Page 121. "Living It Up...Even while people faced major world events, such as the Great War (1914-1918), life in the Comox Valley required living it up. Dance, theatre, music, the arts and, most important, humour, were and continue to be, [...]
Our Summer Hours
Open Seven Days a Week The Courtenay and District Museum is now on its summer operating schedule and is open Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 5:00 and Sundays from 12:00 to 4:00 until Labour Day. As always, members visit free.
Fossil Tours this Summer
Public tours are up and running! Click here to find out more about how you can be part of this adventure.
Winner of BC Historical Federation Historical Writing Competition
Celebrating books that make significant contributions to the historical literature of British Columbia The British Columbia Historical Federation (BCHF) is pleased to announce the winners for the Annual Historical Writing Competition. The prizes were awarded on Saturday, May 28, 2016 at the Revelstoke Mountain Resort in Revelstoke, BC at the BCHF Annual Conference. Congratulations to all the winners. The Honourable Judith Guichon, OBC, Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia presented the BC Lieutenant Governor's Medal for historical writing and $2,500 to Ronald A. Greene for Carlo Gentile, Gold Rush Photographer, 1863-1866 by Ronald A. Greene (Greene Frogge Press). 2nd prize, $1500. Ferries & Fjords: The [...]
Silhouette Exhibit
A private collector has graciously loaned us a sampling of her silhouette items for a short term display running the month of July. Silhouettes are the coloured pictures that are painted on the back side of glass. You might also know them as reverse painting on glass. They were most common from the 1920s through the early 1950s and were often given out as business promotional gifts or sold at dime stores. A variety of subjects (silhouettes are much more than just head profiles) and forms have been chosen for this display so please do make a point of dropping in to enjoy this [...]
Canada Day Open House
Our annual Canada Day open house is fast approaching! Drop by the Courtenay and District Museum after the parade and help celebrate our country's birthday. There will be free admission, balloons and door prize draws between 12 noon and 4 pm. Special activities will include cupcake walks for all ages and a hands-on craft for kids. Musical entertainment will be provided by the talented Alan Jossul. Canada Day is a great chance to explore history with us at the museum.
It’s All There in Black and White: Thunder in the Comox Valley
When you're stuck for a conversation starter you can always talk about the weather! A storm of note from the Comox District Free Press May 28, 1936 edition. With legacy support from the Bickle Family and the Comox Valley Echo.
Book Launch: Peace Dancer
Time and Date: 7pm, Thursday, June 9, 2016 Location: Rotary Gallery of the Courtenay and District Museum Speakers: Roy Henry Vickers and Robert "Lucky" Budd Tickets: Free event; suitable for all ages. Join us to celebrate the launch of Peace Dancer: the fourth and final book in the Northwest Coast Legends series, with a reading and slideshow from the award-winning artist and author duo of Roy Henry Vickers and Robert “Lucky” Budd. Click Here for Details
Watershed Moments: May Day Parade
Here now is an image and quote from the museum's award-nominated book Watershed Moments – A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District. Photo credit: CDM 2004.49.20 Photo caption: The lavish Comox Co-operative Creamery float passes by in the 1923 Courtenay May Day parade, while dairy producer Alex Urquhart watches from the sidelines. Page 90. "In 1901, a group of Comox Valley dairy farmers, who lacked the equipment they needed for processing, set up the Comox Co-operative Creamery Association to provide a central processing co-op for their milk. "The Creamery," as folks came to know it, became one of the most successful enterprises in the [...]
It’s All There in Black and White: H.M.C.S. Aurora
Lucky Cumberland kids got a chance of a lifetime to visit the H.M.C.S. Aurora as reported in this April 30, 1921 edition of the Cumberland Islander. The Aurora served the Royal Navy during World War I before she was offered to the Canadian government in March of 1920. A Wikipedia entry for the warship notes that “The Royal Canadian Navy commissioned her on 1 November 1920. She sailed shortly afterward from the United Kingdom for Halifax, Nova Scotia, arriving on 21 December with two ex-Royal Navy destroyers that had also been transferred. After a minimal time in port at HMC Dockyard, the three ships [...]
Coming Up
April 27: Fanny Bay Hall at 7:00 pm Stop in to the Fanny Bay Hall on April 27 to enjoy the popular Fat Oyster Reading Series and listen to authors Christine Dickinson, Deborah Griffiths and Catherine Siba read from the museum's Watershed Moments - A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District published in the fall with Harbour Publishing.
Watershed Moments: In the Running for BCHF Lieutenant Governor’s Medal
The museum has just received news from the British Columbia Historical Federation that Watershed Moments - A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District is one of seven books to be short-listed for the BC Lieutenant Governor's Medal for Historical Writing. Winners will be announced at the British Columbia Historical Federation Conference Book Awards Reception on Saturday, May 28, 2016 at the Revelstoke Mountain Resort. To celebrate, we're adding another feature to the e-news by presenting images and quotes from the book on a monthly basis. We hope you enjoy it. Photo credit: Stubbs Collection at CDM Photo caption: Central Builders' Wharf, ca. 1910-1920. "Over [...]
Lecture: Scoundrels, Dreamers & Second Sons
Time and Date: 7 pm, Tuesday, May 17, 2016 Location: Rotary Gallery of the Courtenay and District Museum Speaker: Mark Zuehlke Tickets: $5 for Historical Society members; $6 for general public (plus GST). Advance tickets recommended. Tickets can be purchased over the phone by calling 250-334-0686 ext 5. Mark Zuehlke is an award-winning author generally considered to be Canada's foremost popular military historian. In this presentation, Zuehlke returns to the topic of Western Canada's remittance men with the re-release of his 2001 book Scoundrels, Dreamers & Second Sons. More Details